Empirical Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 4,439 Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,439 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $883,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AIZ. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Assurant in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Assurant by 62.1% during the second quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Assurant during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of Assurant during the 2nd quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of Assurant by 35.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 346 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Assurant Stock Up 1.0 %

Assurant stock traded up $1.87 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $194.74. 286,234 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 349,709. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.57. Assurant, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.61 and a 52-week high of $201.55. The business's 50-day moving average price is $191.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.96.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.58 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 19.63% and a net margin of 6.90%. Assurant's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assurant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Assurant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Assurant currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $214.60.

Insider Transactions at Assurant

In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of Assurant stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total value of $267,195.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,329.51. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Assurant

Assurant, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides business services that supports, protects, and connects consumer purchases in North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through two segments: Global Lifestyle and Global Housing. The Global Lifestyle segment offers mobile device solutions, and extended service contracts and related services for consumer electronics and appliances, and credit and other insurance products; and vehicle protection, commercial equipment, and other related services.